ie I used to commute carlingford to pyrmont and return using quarry rd/lovell sometimes. you can get to quarry rd either by going via Victoria Rd and through hunters hill and eventually onto pittwater, or turn off from epping rd at pittwater and use some local roads to get to quarry. Its going backwards a bit though considering where your endpoint is.

If you turn into eastwood after crossing blaxland and the railway, then you can get onto shaftsbury / midson and get right up close to where your route ends. I dunno what traffic on midson is like these days but it is calmed and of a width that should keep you from having a lot of car contention. its got hills though.

The official detour to the M2 is not bad. My suggestions are as follows:

1. Get off the Epping Rd bike path at Ryrie, turn left pass the school up to Cox's Rd, then right onto Cox's, dogleg left Right at Lane Cove Rd onto Kent Rd, Left at Herring, right at Agincourt, then left onto Pembroke, take the path, go up the hill and cross Epping Rd.

2. Take the rail tunnel at Epping Stn, out onto Beecroft Rd. Wait for a break in the traffic and cross over to Kandy Ave. Take Ray Rd all the way to Pennant Pde, turn right, then left at North Rocks Rd. Go right at Pennant Hills Rd, then left at Murray Farm Rd.

3. At the roundabout go right onto Oakes Rd, then up the hill to Aiken, where you turn left (or right if you want to go through the State Forest)

Personally, I would not use any of Epping Rd, Beecroft Rd in the uphill direction, or Copeland Rd heading west (steep and narrow). The ride through Cumbo State forest is probably nice, but you can get to where you are going by turning right at the roundabout at the lowest point of Aiken Rd onto Hill Rd, go to the top, then there is a back way through to the shopping centre and to Coonara Avenue.

zero's suggestion regarding Midson would be OK north of Carlingford Rd. No idea what it's like south of there.

To get to Epping Station, or slightly north of there, follow the official M2 detour. After you get onto Ray Rd, it really depends which part of Carlingford you are going to. But some combination of Pennant Pde, Dunrossil, North Rocks Rd and Jenkins should get you there.

I turn off Epping Rd at Pittwater Rd and essentially follow the M2 Detour. It is obviously longer, but the route is pretty light traffic (at least when I ride it).

At Epping stay on the North Side of the Railway Tracks and ride along Sutherland Rd to Beecroft, then track down Hannah St instead of Copeland Rd. I then head up Cardinal Ave to West Pennant Hills. If you coming from the Cumberland Forest Area and want to come this way, then head up Coonara Ave to Castle Hill Rd (if you can make it to the top!), or cut through the Forest if you can. Come down Castle Hill Rd, and just before Thompsons Corner you can turn left into Church St, which will take you around the back to Cardinal Ave. Cross over Pennant Hills Rd and continue down the hill to Hannah St and then up to Beecroft Rd. In the mornings I will either use Beecroft Rd or Sutherland Rd. There's not much time difference in it, and inbound it is still pretty quick even with the hills. Beecroft Rd is fun when I am on the road bike as I can sit on around 50km/h for most of the way to Epping, but on the commuter with panniers it is a bit tougher so I just take the quiet & cruisy Sutherland Rd option.Through Marsfield I just follow the M2 detour up until Wicks Rd, then divert around Ryrie St for two reasons:- 1) It is full of stop signs and cross intersections and 2) During Spring it is home to one ill tempered magpie which likes to draw blood!

Purple, you can ride the footpath along Epping road from where the Epping bike path ends all the way to Vimiera rd, where you take back streets all the way to Epping train station. Would be a little slow.

Rogan, I can see your route Ryrie, Cox's Rd, Kent Rd, Herring, Agincourt, Pembroke, which puts me back on the route I'm currently taking. I have pondered cutting thru to Murray Farm rd, which I used Wednesday morning coming from Rhodes, but I didn't know how to connect it up, so will try Kandy Ave. I don't have a problem using Cumberland Hwy from Murray Farm rd, just up the footpath to the M2, then onto the Hwy with the right hand turners exiting the M2, its only a short distance.

Queenie, I have used the route where you go under the M2 next to the creek and avoid Beecroft (which I'm currently riding largely on the footpath) . A good quiet road but hillier, so it depends if I'm fresh or rooted by the time I get there.

mikesbytes wrote:Rogan, I can see your route Ryrie, Cox's Rd, Kent Rd, Herring, Agincourt, Pembroke, which puts me back on the route I'm currently taking. I have pondered cutting thru to Murray Farm rd, which I used Wednesday morning coming from Rhodes, but I didn't know how to connect it up, so will try Kandy Ave. I don't have a problem using Cumberland Hwy from Murray Farm rd, just up the footpath to the M2, then onto the Hwy with the right hand turners exiting the M2, its only a short distance.

Queenie, I have used the route where you go under the M2 next to the creek and avoid Beecroft (which I'm currently riding largely on the footpath) . A good quiet road but hillier, so it depends if I'm fresh or rooted by the time I get there.

You cycle the Cumberland Hwy from the M2 and head up towards Castle Hill Rd? My wet weather route is via that way (since Derby St -> Sutherland Rd Underpass floods). I come out near Maurray Farm Rd and take the SUP up the M2, then join the right turn lane coming off the M2. However, when I cross over I jump straight up onto the footpath. Call me nuts, but B-Double Trucks heading to the F3 are not fun to be sharing a 70km/h zone with. That's why my usual commute via Sutherland Rd/Hannah St/Cardinal Ave is so nice. Cars can't use it because of the "No Through Road" bits, and there are no trucks to deal with. Sutherland Rd is pretty tame for hills compared to what awaits you on Cardinal Ave.

Purple - the bike path actually extends as far as Lane Cove Rd these days (thanks to Ryde Council), so if you came down the back streets you can either take the official M2 detour from Epping Station to Wicks Rd (via Coxs Rd shops), or you could take a detour and use Shrimptons Creek SUP from about half way along Kent Rd (through the back of ELS Hall) to cut over to Epping Rd then cycle along the footpath

Understand your concern with Cumberland queequeg. Using the M2 right hand turn exit, I only needed to ride as far as Aiken and didn't find it a problem in the morning. If it had been, I'd hit the footpath too